Sure glad Bill came up to the North Rim to help me pack it in. That went smoothly although I suspected the 5th-wheel tires were a little low on air. So we stopped about 23 miles down the road at the North Rim Country Store and not only did the tires need air but one of them had steel showing through and was sitting at a bit of an angle. Not good. Unfortunately Tyler doesn’t have a jack capable of lifting the 5er so I used their phone to call Good Sam. Cell phone doesn’t work on most of the Kaibab Plateau. After what seemed like an hour on hold plus trying to explain to the Good Sam person where we were and who should come up from Kanab to either change the tire or tow the RV we waited. About an hour later a guy from Ramsay Towing arrived and said the bearings and axle seemed OK so changed the tire and we were finally on our way to park the RV in Fredonia. The Country Rose RV Park was a rather muddy mess. I didn’t make the turn wide enough coming in and bumped a wooden fence which pulled a bracket for the awning off. Not too bad but yet another thing to be fixed. Due to all the extra time taken I just grabbed a few things and went to Bill’s for the night.
Another issue I have to deal with is the seals on the three slide-outs, they are old, dry and shrunken which means water can get into the walls. Definitely not a good thing. The replacement parts can only be gotten through a Keystone dealer which is Camping World, the nearest 1 1/2 hours away in St George. The first appointment I could get is November 4th. And that’ just so they can order parts which could take 7-10 days. And so I wait.
Anyway, made the journey off the Kaibab with only a few trials and tribulations. I’m currently camped out at Bill’s house for an indefinite amount of time.
BTW, the Forest Service job I applied for isn’t being filled yet and another job announcement will go out in the spring. Guess that means more time to play this winter.
In the words of a famous Zen master, Ah Sooooo.
Such is life.
Happy you have a place to stay while you wait for the seals! St. George was not one of our favorite places, but we really liked Hurricane! We had a good campground there too!
One of our RV repair buddies works at the St George Camping World! His name is Bryce! Good guy and very knowledgeable!
If you want a forest service job, there is one about 25 miles north of us, Wrights Lake in the Apalachicola National Forest! Beautiful small campground, nice lake. Main thing they want is mowing done, bathrooms cleaned, flag raised and lowered!
You’d be 30 miles from the Gulf of Mexico and fresh, wonderful seafood!
Me too. St George not my favorite place either but closest for repairs. I liked the park you were in Hurricane. Thanks for the FS job offer, but don’t see myself driving across country to clean toilets. 😉 How about you? Plus I am unfortunately allergic to seafood. Hope all is well.
Well bummer about the job. And about your slide seals. How old is your rig? Hope they don’t leak if the slides are in. Glad to hear you are down safely. Really good call on the don’t drive with that tire decision.
I’m almost relieved not to have to work this winter. It’s a 2004 that hasn’t had much work. Also hoping they don’t leak when in. Sure is nice to have a place to stay while work will be done. That tire was REALLY scary.
A rough start and a bummer about the upcoming repairs, but it’s a good thing you’ve got somewhere to hide up. Lots of rain over your way these past few days!
Nina
Yea not the best way to spend the summer savings but has to be done. Am certainly happy not to be dealing with the mud and rain. Where to after the canyon?
What a way to start your off season travels and thank goodness for Bill! Good luck with repairs. Hope to meet up this winter!
Not the best start but better every day.
Glad you discovered the tire issue before a real problem on the road! Hope you get repairs done with no further problems. Enjoy your vacation.
Me too. If that tire had blown I don’t even want to think of what could happen.
Glad you are safe Gaelyn. Enjoy your winter in redrock country.
Thanks Nancy. Will do and hope to see you at Anza-Borrego this winter.
That Bill sure is nice to have around 😉
We are back in Fountain Hills dealing with medical issues so won’t be coming your way after all. We were looking forward to seeing you both again. Maybe next year.
I think so too. Sorry to hear about medical issues. Hope all is OK. See ya’ when it happens.
Good luck with repairs. Hope we meet up this winter.
Thanks. I hope so too.
It’s always a bummer to have issues with the RV when you are traveling. At least you discovered it before it blew, and waited for help. And yeah, spending the summer savings getting repairs done is not fun, but it will insure you have a comfy home for a while longer.
All so true.
What will be will be. Glad the tyre though did not cause you to have an accident. Enjoy your time with Bill. Diane
Could have been worse.
Always best to find tire problems when they still have air in them! At least your slide and awning issues were timed with a friendly B&B nearby 🙂 Our rig will be at CW on Nov 4 as well, so good luck to both us on timely repairs! Great you’ll have free time to play more this winter.
So glad that tire didn’t blow. It was a long and lucky day.
Bummer ’bout the job and all the other stuff . Tho I know from experience that most of the rest of it is just part of being a full-timer. Jjust like being a homeowner — a certain amount of crap comes along with it. The tire thing could have been so much worse though; so glad you caught it. Also glad you have a good place to camp out! (Actually I bet it turns out to be a really nice vacation ;>))
I’m really looking forward to the time off anyway. Haven’t had to do much maintenance on the 5er so guess it’s time.
If it is not one thing then it is another. I’m glad you spotted the tire before it blew out while you were on the road.
You have to have patience living where you live. Services take a while. Even for an appointment to get parts. Still the trailer fits your lifestyle than anything else.
All true. I’m constantly learning to have patience.